This invention relates to golf shoes and inserts for golf shoes to improve the balance and body position of a golfer during a golf swing.
It has long been recognized that one of the most important skills in the game of golf is a proper body position. However, it also has been recognized that most golfers have difficulty in executing a golf swing properly due to improper body position. Many solutions have been proposed to this problem.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,847,769 issued to Schlesinger teaches the use of built-up soles on golf shoes that cant a golfer's feet toward each other. U.S. Pat. No. 2,855,704 also issued to Schlesinger teaches a pair of golf shoes that cant a golfer's feet together, but also provide the ability to use the shoes for normal walking.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,951,407 issued to Calacurcio teaches a wedge-shaped device for elevating the outside edge of a golfer's shoe and is also collapsible to allow normal walking.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,073,075 issued to O'Brien teaches a wedge-shaped removable member that cants the rear foot of the golfer toward the target. U.S. Pat. No. 4,118,034 also issued to O'Brien provides a similar device.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,227 issued to Simmons teaches a pair of golf shoes with soles that cant a golfer's feet toward each other, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,425 also issued to Simmons teaches adapters for golf shoes to cant a golfer's feet together.
All of the foregoing devices are directed to solving the same problem as the present invention, but teach that the solution is to cant the feet of the golfer together or to cant the rear foot of the golfer towards the target in the case of Calacurcio or O'Brien. However, as indicated in the patents to Simmons, the prior patents to Schlesinger and O'Brien have not solved the problem of a golfer's proper stance and Simmons itself also teaches that the feet of a golfer should be canted towards each other. None of the foregoing devices teaches any modification of the shoe or insert for the front foot of a golfer during a swing, except to cant the front foot symmetrically with the rear foot, as is taught by Simmons and Schlesinger. Thus, the shoe or insert for the front foot is not optimized for the different function to be performed by the front foot during a golf swing.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide golf shoes and inserts for golf shoes to improve the balance and body position of a golfer during a golf swing.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a pair or shoes and inserts that will allow a golfer to walk normally.
It is a still further object of the invention to provide golf shoes and inserts for golf shoes in which each shoe is configured to optimize the different functions performed by each foot during a golf swing.